


a father's love

by Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell



Category: Final Space (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, little cato as a dad, youve heard of dad cato get ready for
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:54:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22722760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell/pseuds/Jace_Diaz_Of_Hell
Summary: Little Cato is a good father.
Relationships: Ash Graven/Little Cato, Little Cato & Original Characters
Kudos: 14





	a father's love

Purrding is a little odd. Ash knows this. Little Cato knows this- their entire family knows this. He’s a Ventrexian- Serepentian hybrid, and he doesn’t look quite like either species. He has the face shape of a Ventrexian, but no fur. Instead, he has little orange scales that cover his skin. One of his eyes is like Little Cato’s- the other one perfectly resembles Ash’s eye when she’s using her powers. He’s right in the uncanny valley on all accounts. 

It doesn’t stop any of them from absolutely loving him. 

Odd as he looks, he’s a really sweet baby. He seems so curious about the ship, about the world he knows. He takes everything in with wide eyes, almost always in someone’s arms as they carry him around. Pretty much the only time he’s not in someone’s arms is if he’s sleeping.

It turns out that he’s a  _ powerful  _ baby, too. They find that out the hard way- he wakes up from a nap, crying, and Ash goes to get him. After a moment Little Cato hears her squeal, an odd mixture of surprise and delight, and he gets up to see what the problem is. 

Purrding is sitting up in his crib, reaching out for Ash and crying. Only it sounds odd, a bit echo-like, and there are little ghost-like hands extending from his body, too. 

Okay. Their baby has superpowers. He takes a deep breath and lets it go, making himself stay calm. They had been prepared for this- there was always a chance of Purrding inheriting some sort of gift from Ash. 

Ash picks Purrding up, cooing  _ mommy’s here  _ at him, and he calms down after a moment, snuggling up against her. The ghost hands vanish.

Yeah. His son is definitely a little weird. But so is his wife, and so is he, so Little Cato doesn’t mind. 

* * *

Purrding grows from a curious baby to a curious toddler, and he’s still as sweet as ever. He loves learning new things. And, like any toddler does, he learns with his hands. As well as questions, and  _ lots  _ of them. 

( _ “Daddy? Why do you have fur? Why don’t I? Why does mommy only have one eye? Why does Auntie Neb like singing so much? How is Uncle Mer so fast? Why does the ship go? Why-” _

He does his best to answer each of these questions, but some of the answers fly right over Purrding’s head.)

He likes to be included in talks, too- he loves when they ask his opinion on things, a solemn expression on his little face as he thinks it out. 

(“Why are there so many stars?” He asks one night, looking out of the bridge window from his spot in Gary’s lap.

“Hmmm…. Why do  _ you  _ think there are so many stars?” Gary asks after a moment. He watches the thoughts turn over on Purrding’s face as the little boy puzzles it out. 

“It looks like glitter,” He says finally. “Like Auntie Neb’s dresses. Someone really really big must have spilled a lot of it.”

Little Cato, watching, can’t help but smile. A part of him wishes that Purrding won’t ever lose this- will always stay this curious, this fascinated with the world around him. 

He just wants his son to stay happy.)

* * *

He’s six years old when it happens.

They’ve spent his entire life making sure he knows he’s loved, that it doesn’t matter how odd he looks, that he’s their son and their family and they love him no matter what. 

And then they’re on a planet to refuel and pick up food, and Purrding shyly asks if he can go talk to the other kids he sees in part of the market. Ash is nervous, but gives him permission to go all the same. 

He smiles, hugs her enthusiastically and scampers off. He’s back less than ten minutes later, an odd shimmering around him that Little Cato has begun to connect with him just barely holding back the ghostgrip. He’s also just barely holding back tears. 

When he whispers that the kids thought he was creepy, that they made fun of him for how he looked, Little Cato has to full-body restrain Ash from going after them because she’s  _ pissed.  _

She calms down eventually, but Purrding is still standing there, looking so small, so upset and unsteady on his feet. Little Cato feels like his heart is going to break for his son. 

He doesn’t know what to say to him, and neither does Ash. He doesn’t know how he can make this better. In the end, once they get back to the ship, its Nebula who comes to the rescue. 

She was off on her own, buying new makeup to try. She’s grinning when she comes back to the ship,, but it fades when she sees the expression on Purrding’s face, standing alone in the room. She’s been a little bit distant lately, but she has a soft spot when it comes to Little Cato. It seems like it extends to his son, too. 

“Hey, buddy.” She says, dropping to her knees awkwardly. “What’s wrong?”

He looks around to try and make sure no ones listening, and then leans forward and starts repeating what happened to her quietly. Her face softens, and she nods. 

“I’m sorry that happened to you.” She says, and Little Cato is straining to hear. 

“...Am I? Creepy?” He asks her, and Little Cato almost blows his cover by answering him. Instead he bites his lip and waits to see how Nebula answers it. 

She holds out her hands, and after just a moment of hesitation, he sets his hands in hers.

“Listen to me.” She tells him, and he nods. “You are  _ not  _ creepy. “

“But they said-”

“It doesn’t  _ matter  _ what they said.” Nebula interrupts, brushing his pink hair out of his face so she can see both of his eyes. “You know why? Because  _ they  _ don’t matter.”

He tilts his head, confused, and she continues. 

“They don’t matter because they’re strangers.” She says firmly. “They don’t  _ know  _ you. They don’t know how much you like learning. They don’t know how much you think things through. They don’t know how much we love you, or how much you love us, or all of the neat things that you can do. They’re just judging your looks. And  _ shit,  _ if they look anything like the people I saw when I was shopping, they’re the ones that should be judged.” 

“That’s a bad word.” He says quietly, although he’s smiling a little and no longer closer to tears. “You shouldn’t swear.”

“I won’t tell if you don’t tell.” She says playfully, and he laughs a little. “Deal?”

“Deal.” He says, and then hesitates a moment before hugging her. She hugs him back, closing her eyes for a moment. “Thank you, Aunt Neb.” He adds before he leaves. 

She’s barely back on her feet before Little Cato is out of his hiding spot and pulling her into a hug.

* * *

"Dad?"

Little Cato looks up from cleaning his gun, setting it down so he can pay more attention to Purrding. 

"You okay?" He asks, because its the first question he always asks these days. Purrding is eleven now, and it makes him and Ash nervous. 

He was eleven when the Lord Commander threw him in jail after his father refused to kill him. Ash was around that age when her sister was sacrificed. Of course they're on edge.

"I'm… confused." His son says finally. "Uncle Mer says Aunt Nebula left and we haven't heard from her because she hates hybrids."

Little Cato opens his mouth, but Purrding isnt finished yet.

"It doesn't make sense- she was around my whole life and I didn't think she hated me… What do you think?"

Little Cato pats the bed next to him. Purrding takes a few steps forward and sits down. 

" She doesn't hate us." He says after a moment. "I hung out with her the night before she left and she cried about how much she was going to miss us. And I know she's opened every video transmission that we've sent her. She wouldn't do that if she hated us." 

Purrding nods, like that makes sense to him.

"...So why hasn't she answered?" He asks. 

Little Cato doesn't have an answer for him.

* * *

Its too soon, he thinks, but he doesn't say it out loud. 

His son must be able to see it on his face. 

"Dad," He says, gently, "I'm only going to be gone a week or so. And I'll be with Meri."

"I know," Little Cato says, and then smiles. "Can't believe you're old enough to help on their ship. Soon you'll be off on your own."

Purrding rolls his eyes, smiling slightly at his Dad's antics. 

"I'm  _ twelve. " _ He points out. "There's an entire six years before I'm even old enough for that."

He takes a couple steps forwards, hugging Little Cato around the waist.

"I love you." He mutters.

"Love you more," Little Cato says, hugging him back. "Have fun."

"I will." Purrding answers, and then he's gone, his ghostgrip lifting him up into the Mechataur. Little Cato watches the ship until its no longer visible.

He's going to do great.


End file.
